Ep. 68: Woes

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LUKE 11:37-54

Jesus was invited by a Pharisee to the morning meal. This resulted in his second recorded teaching in Perea. It is the last address to the Pharisees in Luke but it was not to set up yet another accusation against him.

What would they have eaten at this meal? The favourite food was young meat, goats, lambs and calves. Beef was so often used and birds even more rarely. Bread was regarded as the mainstay of life and in a sense it constituted the meal. For the blessing was spoken over the bread and this was supposed to cover all the rest of the food that followed, such as the meat, fish or vegetables. Similarly, the blessing spoken over the wine included all other kinds of drinks. Otherwise, it would have been necessary to pronounce a separate benediction over each different article eaten or drunk. He who neglected the prescribed benedictions was regarded as if he had eaten of things dedicated to God.

Let us suppose the guests assembled. To such a meal they would not be summoned by slaves, nor be received in such solemn state as at feasts. First, each would observe, as a religious rite, ‘the washing of hands.’ Next, the head of the house would cut a piece from the whole loaf and speak the blessing. As he generally did, Jesus omitted the ‘washing of hands’ before the meal.

So what happened at the table of the Pharisee? When the water was presented to him, Jesus would either refuse it or would be expected to first wash his hands. Yet Jesus did nothing and sat down to the meal without this formality. He was true to his teachings that spiritual purification set aside any ordinances of man which diverted thoughts of purity into questions of the most childish character.

On the other hand, we can also understand what bitter thoughts must have filled the mind of the Pharisee when his guest neglected to perform this cherished rite. It was an insult to himself, a defiance of Jewish Law, a revolt against the most cherished traditions of the synagogue. Pharisees were taught not to sit down to a meal with such a person. He must have regretted inviting Jesus to his table.

Formerly he had shown how traditionalism came into conflict with the written Law of God. Now, how it superseded the first principles which underlay that Law. Remember. He had laid down the principle that defilement came not from without inwards, but from within outwards. And the Phariseeism which pretended to the highest purity, was, really, the greatest impurity - the defilement of graves, only covered up, not to be seen of men! It was at this point that one of the Scribes at the table spoke up. But, as the Scribe rightly remarked, by attacking, not merely their practice, but their principles, the whole system of traditionalism was condemned.

And so the Lord most definitely meant it. The Scribes were the followers of the traditional law; those who bound and loosed in Israel. They did bind on heavy burdens, but they never loosed one; all those grievous burdens of traditionalism they laid on the poor people, but not the slightest effort did they make to remove any of them.

There was a terrible truth and solemnity in what Jesus spoke and in the sorrow with which he denounced them. The next few months would bear witness how truly they had taken upon them this tradition of guilt and all the later history of Israel shows how fully this sorrow has come upon them.

This is an extract from the book, Jesus : Life and Times, available for £10 here (Finalist for Academic Book of the year at 2023 CRT awards)

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Ep. 67: Beelzebul